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Overview

Course Prescription

Advanced clinical work experience in locations external to the Grafton Campus Optometry Clinic. These locations may include University satellite clinics, private optometry practices, hospital eye departments, private ophthalmology practices, overseas institutions, or other approved locations. Topics include: therapeutic management of eye disease, legislation relevant to healthcare including registration and competency, occupational safety and health, ethics, practice management, and small business management.

Course Overview

The primary objective of this clinically focused Part V course is to gain workplace-based experience of optometry in both community optometry practices and in the interprofessional environments of public (hospital) and private ophthalmology practices. Students will also take part in a number of outreach initiatives including providing optometric services under supervision in a range of locations including schools, provincial and rural settings. On completion of this course, students will have the ability to manage a wide range of optometric conditions, including the appropriate use of ocular therapeutic medicines, and know when referral for tertiary care is appropriate and required. The students will also have further developed their understanding of the legislative, ethical, cultural and business aspects of optometry practice.

Course Contacts

Course Coordinator and Course Director: Geraint Phillips ( g.phillips@auckland.ac.nz )

Workload Expectations

This 60 point course is delivered across two semesters. For this course, you can expect 10 -12 hours of clinics and tutorials, 4-5 hours of reading and thinking about the content, and 4 - 5 hours of work on assignments, portfolio and/or test preparation per week.


Course Prerequisites, Corequisites and Restrictions

Prerequisite
Restriction

Additional Advice on Prerequisites

To complete this course students must enrol in OPTOM 561 A and B

Locations and Semesters Offered

LocationSemester
Grafton

Teaching and Learning

Campus Experience

Attendance is required at scheduled activities including tutorials and clinics to receive credit for components of the course.
Lectures will be available as recordings. Other learning activities including tutorials will not be available as recordings.
The course may include live online events including tutorials. Attendance on campus is required for the written and oral tests.
The activities for the course are scheduled as a standard weekly timetable.

Learning Resources

Taught courses use a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas to provide students with learning materials including reading lists and lecture recordings (where available). Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor.

Copyright

The content and delivery of content in this course are protected by copyright. Material belonging to others may have been used in this course and copied by and solely for the educational purposes of the University under license. You may copy the course content for the purposes of private study or research, but you may not upload onto any third-party site, make a further copy or sell, alter or further reproduce or distribute any part of the course content to another person.

Learning Continuity

In the event of an unexpected disruption, we undertake to maintain the continuity and standard of teaching and learning in all your courses throughout the year. If there are unexpected disruptions the University has contingency plans to ensure that access to your course continues and course assessment continues to meet the principles of the University’s assessment policy. Some adjustments may need to be made in emergencies. You will be kept fully informed by your course co-ordinator/director, and if disruption occurs you should refer to the university website for information about how to proceed.

Academic Integrity

The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student's own work, reflecting their learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the internet. A student's assessed work may be reviewed for potential plagiarism or other forms of academic misconduct, using computerised detection mechanisms.

Similarly, research students must meet the University’s expectations of good research practice. This requires:

  • Honesty - in all aspects of research work
  • Accountability - in the conduct of research
  • Professional courtesy and fairness – in working with others
  • Good stewardship – on behalf of others
  • Transparency – of research process and presentation of results
  • Clarity - communication to be understandable, explainable and accessible

For more information on the University’s expectations of academic integrity, please see the Academic Conduct section of the University policy hub.

Disclaimer

Elements of this outline may be subject to change. The latest information about taught courses is made available to enrolled students in Canvas.

Students may be asked to submit assessments digitally. The University reserves the right to conduct scheduled tests and examinations online or through the use of computers or other electronic devices. Where tests or examinations are conducted online remote invigilation arrangements may be used. In exceptional circumstances changes to elements of this course may be necessary at short notice. Students enrolled in this course will be informed of any such changes and the reasons for them, as soon as possible, through Canvas.


Assessment and Learning Outcomes

Course Learning Outcomes

CLO #OutcomeProgramme Capability Link
1
2
3
4
5

Assessments

Assessment TypeAssessment PercentageAssessment Classification

Assessment to CLO Mapping

Assessment Type12345

Student Feedback, Support and Charter

Student Feedback

Feedback on taught courses is gathered from students at the end of each semester through a tool called SET or Qualtrics. The lecturers and course co-ordinators will consider all feedback and respond with summaries and actions. Your feedback helps teachers to improve the course and its delivery for future students. In addition, class Representatives in each class can take feedback to the department and faculty staff-student consultative committees.

Additional Information on Student Feedback

Reflection of 2025:


Here’s what was liked about the course:

The OTDCP sessions and the therapeutics tutorials.

The off-site visits to the various clinics.


Here’s what students said was most challenging and could be improved:

The word limits on some of the assignments. Some limits too low.

Assignments tended to be grouped later in the year, making the second half of the year busy.

More feedback required for some of the assignments.

More resources and information for the business assignment.


These are the changes that will be made for next year:

A review of the word limits on all the assignments judged against what is reasonably expected for the weighing of the assignment.

A review as to whether some of the assignments could be undertaken earlier in the year, balanced against the need for some to be exit-time (end of year) assessments.

Add more details to the marking rubrics to enable them to provide more feedback.

A review of the resources and information for the business assignment, with a view to providing more practical examples.

Class representatives

Class representatives are students tasked with representing student issues to departments, faculties, and the wider university. If you have a complaint about this course, please contact your class rep who will know how to raise it in the right channels. See your departmental noticeboard for contact details for your class reps.

Tuākana

Tuākana is a multi-faceted programme for Māori and Pacific students providing topic specific tutorials, one-on-one sessions, test and exam preparation and more. Explore your options at Tuakana Learning Communities.

Inclusive Learning

All students are asked to discuss any impairment related requirements privately, face to face and/or in written form with the course coordinator, lecturer or tutor. Student Disability Services also provides support for students with a wide range of impairments, both visible and invisible, to succeed and excel at the University. For more information and contact details, please visit the Student Disability Services’ website.

Wellbeing

We all go through tough times during the semester, or see our friends struggling. There is lots of help out there - please see the Support Services page for information on support services in the University and the wider community.

Special Circumstances

If your ability to complete assessed work is affected by illness or other personal circumstances outside of your control, contact a member of teaching staff as soon as possible before the assessment is due. If your personal circumstances significantly affect your performance, or preparation, for an exam or eligible written test, refer to the University’s aegrotat or compassionate consideration page. This should be done as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the affected test or exam date.

Student Charter and Responsibilities

The Student Charter assumes and acknowledges that students are active participants in the learning process and that they have responsibilities to the institution and the international community of scholars. The University expects that students will act at all times in a way that demonstrates respect for the rights of other students and staff so that the learning environment is both safe and productive. For further information visit Student Charter.

Student Academic Complaints and Disputes

Students with concerns about teaching including how a course is delivered, the resources provided, or supervision arrangements, have the right to express their concerns and seek resolution. The university encourages informal resolution where possible, as this is quicker and less stressful. For information on the informal and formal complaints processes, please refer to the Student Academic Complaints Statute in the Student Policies and Guidelines section of the Policy Hub.